


Where love that traveled far had found me

by ViimaTheFailcat



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Coming Out, Father-Son Relationship, Homophobic Language, Interviews, Mother-Son Relationship, Other, Paparazzi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:54:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24590374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ViimaTheFailcat/pseuds/ViimaTheFailcat
Summary: Chairman Rose's journey on coming out to his parents and to all of Galar.
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a series of drabbles that I wrote for my RP blog, but decided to post here too.
> 
> The title is from the song "Remind Me" by Röyksopp

Jaideep Rose was returning from lunch when Oleana approached him.

“Sir, I found something online that you might want to see,” she said, holding a tablet towards him.

Jaideep raised his eyebrows and took the device. It was open on a gossip site. The article in question was entitled “ _Ex-Chairman’s GAY LOVER? Chairman Rose spotted getting cosy with a man at Wyndon Museum!_ ”

Hmm. Well, then. Jaideep scrolled down the article. Apparently a paparazzi had caught him when he had been on a date with his boyfriend… Of course _that one_ night when Jaideep let his guard down and decided “fuck it”, there was a paparazzi to catch it. Oh, there were photos.

First of them was of Jaideep and his boyfriend, standing outside the museum, the boyfriend’s hands on Jaideep’s waist, Jaideep’s hands on his shoulders. Their faces were close to each other. The next photo was the two of them in the same position, but kissing. Or seemingly kissing, the photos were rather blurry, taken from afar.

Jaideep swiped back to the first photo. Such a shame it was so out of focus. It would have been a rather lovely photo of the two of them…

“Should we do something about it?” Oleana asked.

Jaideep chuckled. “No need, thank you. If we tried to get this photo removed, it’d just draw more attention to it.”

Oleana nodded. “Understood.”

The two went their own ways, returning to their respective offices. Jaideep was already planning to come out publicly later this year. He had nothing to hide at this point.

Jaideep sat down at his desk and sought the article out and opened the first photo again. Despite it being such a violation of his privacy, it still… made Jaideep feel warm. He longed for a time when he could kiss the man he loves in public without having to fear for his reputation. One could maybe argue it was his own fault for being so obsessed with creating the “perfect average Galarian” mask for himself. The mask that forced him to hide parts of himself that would set him apart from what was “normal”. It had become a sort of armour for him, but also a prison.

But not for long. He could remove that mask soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Jaideep calls his mother. “Hi, mum. It’s me.”

“Jaideep! How are you, honey?” Aditi Rose chirps.

“I’m fine,” Jaideep smiles, slipping back to his Chirchester accent. “Is, uh… is dad nearby?”

“I don’t think so,” Aditi hums, “Why? Do you want me to get him?”

“No, no!” Jaideep says hastily, “I just wanted to make sure… There’s… something I need to tell you. Something that I’m not ready to tell him, yet.”

“What is it, honey?” Aditi asks, sounding worried.

Jaideep draws a breath. “Remember that one afternoon when I, mmh, jokingly asked what would happen if I brought a boyfriend? Instead of a girlfriend?”

A pause. That particular joke was incredibly ill-timed because Jaideep’s father was just stepping into the room. The resulting argument wasn’t pleasant for anyone involved. “I do, yes,” Aditi says slowly.

Jaideep lets out a nervous laugh. “I, uh… Did you answer that?”

Another pause. “I don’t think I did,” Aditi says, “But, I would have said that… that it doesn’t matter. You’re still my baby boy.”

Jaideep releases a shaky breath. “That’s. That’s good. Thank you.”

“Is there a reason why you’re bringing this up?” Aditi asks.

Jaideep clears his throat. “Y-yes. That… That might actually happen.”

Another pause. “O-oh.”

“Y-yeah, I… I’m bisexual, mum.”

Jaideep hears Aditi take a breath. “That means that… you like men…?”

“And women,” Jaideep reminds. Even if he has an overwhelmingly strong preference for men, he doesn’t think falling in love with a woman was impossible.

There is yet another silence as Aditi mulls this new information over. “Thank you for telling me, Jaideep,” she said gently. “Like I said, you’re still my baby.”

Jaideep draws a shaky breath. “Thank you, mum. Sorry I did this over the phone, I don’t have time to visit…” Also he fears that he would chicken out if he tried to do this face-to-face.

“Don’t give me that,” Aditi scoffed gently. “You’re a busy man. But… When are you going to visit, Jaideep? I want to meet your boyfriend!”

Jaideep couldn’t help but laugh. “Wh-who told you I had a boyfriend?”

“Didn’t you just say that? That you might bring me a boy to show!”

“That was hypothetical!” Jaideep chuckled, wiping his eyes. “But uh… I’ll ask him. When it’d suit him.”

“You _have_ a boyfriend,” Aditi breathed conspiratorially.

“You got me,” Jaideep chuckled. “I can’t hide anything from you, can I?”

“No, you can’t,” Aditi giggles, “I’m your mother.”

From there, the conversation shifts to Aditi asking about Rose’s boyfriend. She really seems eager to know about him and eventually meet him. After twenty minutes, they end the call.

Jaideep sighs with relief. That went better than he feared. 

Now he just had to have the same talk with his father…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a headcanon that Rose is from Chirchester and his natural accent is Chirchester's accent (real-life equivalent is Bath, Somerset, if you want to look it up), but he learned to speak in RP (the generic, fancy British accent) that he uses when he's in public.


	3. Chapter 3

“Are you staying for dinner?” Aditi Rose asks.

Jaideep smiles crookedly. “That depends on Dad.”

Aditi looks confused. “What do you mean?”

“I’m going to…” Jaideep lowers his voice so his father doesn’t hear. “I’m gonna come out to him.”

Aditi falls serious. She nods. “He’s in the garden.”

“Thanks.”

Jaideep steps towards the back door that lead to the garden, but his mother grabs his arm.

“Jai. Whatever he says to you, I’m still here for you.”

Jaideep nods with a thin smile. “Thank you, Mum.”

Aditi lets go of his hand and he made his way to the garden. His father is polishing his klinklang. The klinklang clicks and whirrs happily when it sees Jaideep, alerting his father to his presence.

Gaurav Rose turns his head with a small smile. “Jaideep,” he says, “Did you come have dinner with us?”

 _That depends on you, doesn’t it?_ Jaideep thinks with a crooked smile. “Actually, I came to talk to you.”

Gaurav raises his eyebrows. “What is it?”

Deep breath. Squared shoulders. Back straight. He practised this. Just state the situation, don’t confuse him with labels. “I have a boyfriend.”

A pause. Gaurav turns to properly face his son, giving him a long look from head to toe. Jaideep’s chest tightens with anxiety as the silence drags on.

Finally, Gaurav sighs and wipes his hands on the rag. “I should have fucking guessed,” he mutters.

Jaideep suppresses a sigh and keeps eye contact, bracing himself. Here it comes.

Gaurav paces a bit, rubbing his face. The klinklang whirrs worriedly. “Where? Where did I go wrong, Jaideep?”

“You did nothing wrong,” Jaideep says, “This is just-”

“Was it the architecture?”

Jaideep sputters. “I-I’m sorry?”

“Is this because I let you study architecture?”

Jaideep’s mind reels. What the hell is the connection here? “No, it’s not because I studied architecture. This is just who I am, Dad.”

“It’s not normal,” Gaurav snaps, voice gaining volume. “It’s not who you are. It’s wrong! It’s not natural!”

“Dad, the neighbours,” Jaideep tries to hush him.

“It’s not right!” Gaurav ignores him. “It’s disgusting! Your… _man_. What he’s doing to you, it’s not right! It’s disgusting, Jaideep!”

Even if Jaideep was expecting this, it doesn’t sting any less. “Alright,” Jaideep speaks up, an edge to his voice, “You can call _me_ a disgusting deviant all you want, but you do _not_ get to insult him without even _meeting_ him.” Jaideep realises that his voice is also gaining in volume and he falls silent. He sighs and rubs his eyes. “Look. I can see that you’re upset. I understand that this is a bit of a shock-”

“Why do you keep disappointing me, Jaideep?”

Jaideep is struck speechless for a second, the words hitting him like a slap to the face. He’s quiet for a few seconds before he gathers his wits again. “I… I-I know you’re upset. I know this can come as a shock to you. I…” He pauses. He has to go, _now,_ before he falls apart in front of his father. “But this is who I am, Dad. I… I’ll let you cool off. If you want to have a level-headed and sane conversation with me, you know where to find me.”

With that, Jaideep leaves the garden, leaving his father behind without a second glance.

The door closes behind him and Jaideep lets out a shaky sigh.

Aditi is by his side almost immediately. “How did it go?”

Jaideep just shakes his head and rubs his eyes.

“Oh, honey…” Aditi pulls him into a hug. “I’m so sorry. I’ll talk to him.”

Jaideep just grunts into her shoulder, fighting to hold back tears. “I… I should get going.”

“Of course.” Aditi pats her son’s shoulder as she lets go.

The cab flight back to Wyndon clears Jaideep’s head. By the time he gets back to his house, he just feels _empty_. No tears to shed.

A few hours after that Aditi texts him.

“I talked to him. He’s still unhappy, but he’s willing to meet your boyfriend. You’re still his son.”

So Jaideep is not disowned. That’s… great, he supposes. But still, he’s a little too sore about the conversation to make his boyfriend endure Gaurav’s cold, conditional and reluctant acceptance.

“Thanks, Mum,” Jaideep replies, “I’ll think about it.”


	4. Chapter 4

[A screenshot from Chattor, from Jaideep Rose (@Rose). It reads: "Now that it's #PrideMonth, I thought I'd say something. My unwavering support for the LGBTQ+ community doesn't come from simple allyship, it comes from being a part of it. I'm bisexual." The post was published on 1:31 PM, June 1st 2020, with 1.2K replies, 13K rechats and 18K likes.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope the image works, I've never tried posting pictures on AO3 before.
> 
> Chattor is the pokemon world's equivalent of Twitter in my headcanon.


	5. Chapter 5

An article from Ho-Oh’s Folk.com.

##  **Ex-Chairman Comes Out As Bisexual - Exclusive Interview**

⊳ Play video

(The logo of the site spins into view, stops for a few seconds, then bounces off to the corner of the screen, revealing two people sitting on armchairs. **  
**

One of them is the interviewer, an Asian trans woman and the other is the former chairman of the Galar League, Rose. The interviewer, Susan Liu, as the name card on the screen indicates, smiles brightly to the camera and begins to speak.)

Susan: Happy pride month, everyone! We here at Ho-Oh’s Folk continue our pride month coverage with exclusive interviews. Today are interviewing someone very special. Galar’s very own former chairman Jaideep Rose. Thank you for coming!

Rose: Thank you for having me.

(Rose is now speaking in a softer, less bombastic voice. His accent is also different from the Received Pronunciation and less posh.)

Susan: How are you?

Rose: I’m fine, thank you, how are you?

Susan: I’m fine too, thank you. So, mister Rose… I heard you had a big announcement a week ago.

Rose: Indeed.

Susan: You came out as bisexual on your Chattor.

(Rose smiles, a touch nervously, and straightens his tie.)

Rose: Yes. Yes I did.

Susan: How has the reception to that been?

Rose: It's… been surprisingly supportive. Of course, there’s been the occasional, uh, image. What do people call those again? Memes?

Susan: Memes, yeah.

Rose: Yes, yes. The occasional meme saying “gay people I respect” and a picture of, say, Burgh from Unova, then “gay people I don’t respect” and a picture of me. Which-

Susan: No way! 

Rose: Hah, yeah. Which, honestly? Fair enough, I guess. I’m not perfect, especially after all that… stuff during the League Finals.

Susan: It’s still a little cruel, though, isn’t it? You took this huge step that must have taken a ton of courage and people use that to make memes.

Rose: (shrugs) It is what it is. You learn to grow a thick skin once you get into the same position as me.

Susan: I bet. Speaking of getting into that position… Can we talk about your journey to this (she motions at Rose) openly bisexual Rose?

Rose: Absolutely.

Susan: How was it growing up for you? When did you realise yourself?

Rose: (takes a breath and leans back in his chair) Ah. Well. As a kid, I always had crushes on both boys and girls. It’s just been a fact that I’ve always been aware of. I never had a big aha- moment, so to speak.

Susan: Did your parents know about any of this?

Rose: (his smile shrinks) Well…

Susan: Oh, that’s not a good sign.

Rose: (chuckles darkly) Indeed. I… I don’t they ever knew or guessed, but I… had some other habits that my father particular wasn’t too satisfied with.

Susan: (grimaces) Oh boy.

Rose: Mm-hmm. He made sure that he scared all… (he makes a motion with his hand) not adequately masculine mannerisms out of me. One time, he saw me holding one of my mother’s nail polish bottles. Holding.

Susan: Oh no…

Rose: I mean, to his defence, I was thinking to paint my nails, but, uh… you know. That idea was shot down pretty quickly. (laughs uncomfortably)

Susan: (grimaces) That’s awful. How about school? Were more accepting there?

Rose: Hmm. I wouldn’t know, I was pretty deep in the closet for pretty much all of my youth. I did get to experiment with, uh. Dating boys. But I was very shy growing up, so I didn’t do much. (laughs)

Susan: (sputters) Wait, you? Shy?

Rose: (laughs) Yes! I didn’t come out of the womb like (switches back to RP accent and bombastic voice) “Hello everybody!”.

Susan: (laughs) Yeah, fair. It’s a journey for everyone.

Rose: Indeed. I really started coming out of my shell after I enrolled into university and even more when I started Macro Cosmos.

Susan: But not out-

Rose: Not out of the closet, yes. (laughs) That’s for later. But, yes, I started consciously working to be less shy. While that did work, it also helped me to create this… mask for myself. When I became the chairman of the League and I was in the public eye even more than before, I… that mask became my image. I tried to become this perfect Average Galarian, I tried to hide and erase myself when I was doing interviews, opening and commentating.

Susan: That sounds rough.

Rose: (shrugs) It was, at times, but I thought, I still do think, that the Gym Challenge isn’t about me, it’s about the gym leaders and challengers. My job is to just make sure that the gyms work as they should, that the gym leaders don’t burn out. And, during the Gym Challenge, I just open the challenge, introduce the gym leaders and commentate on the finals. My thought process was that if I let any of me, my real self, to show in my public job, it would distract from the gym leaders, who are the real stars of the show. Does that make sense?

Susan: It does to me, yes.

Rose: Yes. So that, line of thought, that mask, became sort of a closet for me. And as time went on, I became more and more terrified of the backlash I’d get if I came out. So I just… didn’t.

Susan: Hmm. So what gave you the incentive to finally do it?

Rose: Well, uh. You might have heard of the little thing I did…

Susan: Mm. The thing where you tried to, what was it?

Rose: Recreate the Darkest Day.

Susan: Yes. I am familiar.

Rose: Yeah. So uh. That happened. So I thought, “well, my reputation can’t get any worse, so… what the hell!” (he makes a “tada” gesture with his hands) I don’t have to fear my reputation taking more damage than this.

Susan: Wouldn’t that mean that if you hadn’t done that… You wouldn’t have come out?

Rose: I… Maybe eventually. But it wouldn’t have happened for another… (he waves a hand) three, five years. Maybe more.

Susan: So maybe it’s better like this.

Rose: Definitely. Now I can go on a date with my boyfriend without having to worry about paparazzis outing me before I’m ready.

Susan: Mm, yes, the freedom.

Rose: Exactly! Last night, I was on a walk with him and he took my hand and I, uh… I did flinch, but I quickly remembered that I didn’t have to hide. I’ve taken the mask off and I don’t have to hide anymore. It’s amazing.

Susan: Right?!

Rose: Holding hands while walking is intoxicating. People should do that all the time. And to be able to do it openly and without fear…

Susan: It’s the best.

Rose: It truly is.

Susan: (glances offscreen) Our producer is motioning for me to wrap this up, but let’s get one more question in. What would you say to the Galarian kids and teenagers who are struggling with same issues as you?

Rose: Ooh, that’s a good one. Let’s see. (leans back in his seat) It might feel hard now, but hang in there. (he turns to speak directly to the camera) Even if your parents don’t accept you or know the real you, just grind your teeth and wait until you’re in a safer situation. It might not look like it, but better days are coming. Please hang in there.

Susan: (presses her hand to her chest and smiles) Aww. I would have loved to hear that when I was younger. Thank you for the interview, mister Rose.

Rose: (smiles) Thank you for having me.

Susan: (turns back to speak to the camera) Thank you for watching, don’t forget to like, subscribe and hit that bell button so you won’t miss any of our exclusive pride month interviews! Until next time, I’m Susan Liu from Ho-Oh’s Folk.com.

_(video ends)_


End file.
